High performance electric grill, method, and heat radiating module

An apparatus for grilling a food product comprising:

• a grill base housing having an interior cavity with an interior bottom;
• a lid for opening and closing said grill base housing;
• a heating module for radiating heat energy, said heating module being positioned at least partially within said interior cavity of said grill base housing above said interior bottom of said interior cavity, said heating module comprising an emitter plate having an upper emitting surface;
• and
• a food support grate which is positionable on said emitter plate, said food support grate having a food support surface which is spaced above said upper emitting surface of said emitter plate, wherein
• said heating module further comprises a module housing having a module heating cavity therein, said module housing having a module housing bottom wall and an upwardly extending module housing side wall, said module heating cavity having a module heating cavity bottom wall and an upwardly extending module heating cavity side wall, said module heating cavity bottom wall being positioned above said module housing bottom wall to form a module bottom gap between said module heating cavity bottom wall and said module housing bottom wall, said module heating cavity side wall laterally surrounds said module heating cavity, said module housing side wall laterally surrounds and is spaced apart from said module heating cavity side wall to form an upwardly extending module annular gap between said module housing side wall and said module heating cavity side wall, said upwardly extending module annular gap laterally surrounds said module heating cavity, an upper end of said module heating cavity side wall defines an outer perimeter of an upper end of said module heating cavity, and an upper end of said module housing side wall defines an outer perimeter of an upper end of said module housing,
• said module housing bottom wall and said module heating cavity bottom wall have no openings therethrough,
• said module housing bottom wall is spaced above said interior bottom of said grill base housing,
• said emitter plate being positioned on said upper end of said module housing and said upper emitting surface of said emitter plate comprising an alternating series of parallel, longitudinal ridges and valleys, said emitter plate having an outer perimeter, and said emitter plate having no openings therethrough,
• said heating module also comprises at least one electric heating element positioned in said module heating cavity beneath said emitter plate,
• said outer perimeter of said emitter plate is positioned on or extends beyond said outer perimeter of said upper end of said module housing such that said emitter plate covers and closes said upper ends of said module heating cavity and said module housing such that said upper end of said module heating cavity is at least 99% closed to air flow out of or into said upper end of said module heating cavity,
• said emitter plate and said module housing are closed to flow from said upper emitting surface of said emitter plate into said module heating cavity of fat and water falling onto said upper emitting surface from said food product, and
• each longitudinal end of each of said longitudinal ridges and valleys of said upper emitting surface of said emitter plate extends at least as far as said outer perimeter of said upper end of said module housing so that fat and water which falls onto said upper emitting surface from said food product is delivered by said longitudinal ridges and valleys to a location in said interior cavity of said grill base housing outside of said module housing.

An outdoor cooking grill for grilling a food product comprising:

• a grill base housing having an interior cavity with an interior bottom;
• a lid for opening and closing said grill base housing;
• a heating module for radiating heat energy, said heating module comprising a module housing at least partially within said interior cavity of said grill base housing, said module housing having a module housing bottom wall above said interior bottom of said interior cavity, said module housing having a module heating cavity therein with a module heating cavity bottom wall which is spaced above said module housing bottom wall, said module housing bottom wall and said module heating cavity bottom wall having no openings therethrough, said module heating cavity having an upwardly extending module heating cavity side wall which laterally surrounds said module heating cavity, and said module housing has an upwardly extending module housing side wall which laterally surrounds and is spaced apart from said module heating cavity side wall to form an upwardly extending module annular gap which laterally surrounds said module heating cavity;
• said heating module further comprises an emitter plate positioned on an upper end of said module housing, said emitter plate having an upper emitting surface comprising an alternating series of parallel, longitudinal ridges and valleys and said emitter plate having a bottom surface with a lateral cross-sectional shape comprising downwardly projecting corrugations which correspond to said alternating series of parallel, longitudinal ridges and valleys of said upper emitting surface of said emitter plate;
• a food support grate on said upper emitting surface of said emitter plate, said food support grate having a food support surface which is spaced above said upper emitting surface of said emitter plate;
• and
• at least one electric heating element positioned in said module heating cavity of said heating module beneath said emitter plate, wherein
• an upper end of said module housing side wall has corrugations formed therein in which said downwardly projecting corrugations of said bottom surface of said emitter plate are received so that said emitter plate covers and closes an upper end of said module housing and an upper end of said module heating cavity such that said upper end of said module heating cavity is at least 99% closed to air flow out of or into said upper end of said module heating cavity;
• and
• said emitter plate and said module housing are closed to flow from said upper emitting surface of said emitter plate into said module heating cavity of fat and water falling onto said upper emitting surface from said food product.